1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosed technology relates generally to agricultural implements, and in particular to a soil strip assembly for a seed drill row unit.
2. Description of the Related Art
Modern farming operations use specialized agricultural implements to plant seeds in soil having a variety of pre-planting conditions. Seed drills are agricultural tilling implements that plant seeds in row crops by using overlapping discs depending from a supporting structure to penetrate the soil and create a trench in which the seed is deposited. The soil encountered by the seed drill may have been prepared by various tilling implements, or the soil may not have received any tilling whatsoever (“no-till” farming). Tilling is used to prepare the soil for planting seeds by mixing into the soil any fertilizers, herbicides, or organic matter (residue) such as weeds or the remnants from the preceding crop.
A multitude of factors affect crop yield including operation of the discs, proper seed trench creation, and replacement of the disturbed soil and residue. As the discs travel forward through the soil and residue, the material is mechanically displaced to allow planting of the seeds. If the residue is particularly tall it can become lodged between the top of the forward-advancing rotating discs and the overhead supporting structure affecting performance of the discs. Controlling the dispersal of soil and residue material, and replacement of the soil over the seeds is important for proper soil contact with the seed, germination of the seed, and maximum viability of the crop.
Various attachments have been used in an attempt to control dispersal or blow out of material during the planting process. For example, elongated flat metallic and non-metallic scrapers have been attached to the axles of discs in an attempt to control blow out of soil and residue. Such an approach is complicated because it requires the use of a multitude of bolts and mounting plates to attach the scrapers to the outside of each disc, and adjustment of the scrapers or discs requires adjustment of two assemblies for each seed drill row unit. Moreover, such scrapers do not protect the upper portion of the disc from being clogged by residue, and the scraper mechanisms themselves can become fouled up with soil and residue affecting their operation. The aforementioned problems increase the maintenance time and expense necessary to operate the seed drill. What is needed is an attachment for a seed drill that is simple to manufacture, install, adjust and maintain, and protects the opener assembly from becoming fouled with residue in addition to reducing soil blow out from the seed trench.
Heretofore there has not been available a soil strip assembly with the advantages and features of the present invention.